Stringer and tie.



PATBNTED SEPT. 1, 1908.

J. W. COOPER. STBINGER AND TI. nrmouxon rng 0.24. 1001.

. Witam JOHN W. COOPER, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

STRINGER AND TIE.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 1, 1908.

Appiiaaon fliea August 24, 1907. serial No. 889,989.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN W. COOPER, citizen of the United States,residing at Dorchester station, Boston, in the county of Suffolk andState of Massachusetts, have in- 'vented certain new and usefulImprovements in stringers and Ties, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to the construction of railroads and deals moreparticularly with the rails, stringers and ti'es, which, in accordancewith this invention, are of metal and formed in a novel manner andconnected so as to provide a substantial structure and admit of thetread portions of the rails being renewed at a comparatively small costand without necessitating disturbance of the road-bed.

For a full understanding of the invention and the merits thereof andalso to acquire a knowledge of the details of construction and the meansfor effecting the result, reference is to be had to the followingdescription and i accom an ing drawings.

Wh' e t e invention may be adapted to difl'erent forms and conditions bychanges in the structure and minor details without departing from thespirit or essential features thereof, still the preferred embodiment isshown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

' Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a railroad embodyingthe invention. Fig.

2 vis a transverse section of the railroad. Fig.

3 is a perspective view of a tie. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of agrooved rail, such as used for street railways, illustrating theapplication of the invention. Fig. 5`is a sectional view of amodification. Fig. 6 is a cross section of the rail. Fig. 7 is atransverse section of the stringer. i

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following'description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the samereference characters.

The railroad comprises stringers or sleepers A, ties B and rails C. Theseveral parts are of metal and are connected in a substantial manner.The rails, which in the present instance consist of tread portions andsecuring and bracing flanges, are removable to admit ofv their renewalwithout requiring loosening of the stringers or movement of the ties.The stringers or ties A consist of L- beams, one Wing constituting thebase or foot and the other wing forming a Vertical,

support for the tread portion or rail C. The foot or base 1 tapersshghtly towards its outer longitudinal edge. A Vertical Wing 2, formingthe upright, is provided n'ear its upper longitudinal edge withoppositely disposed -fianges 3 and 4, which in addition to strengtheningand bracing the part 2 laterally, support the tread portion O and theflanges cooperating therewith. A flange 5. projects above the lateralflanges 3 and 4 and is in line with the flange or support 2 and has therail or tread portion O connected directly thereto. The several parts 1,2, 3, 4 and 5 are of integral formation, being rolled at one and thesame time, thereby obviating the formation of joints. The' railsupporting 'flange 5 has a longitudinal off-set 6 upon one side near oneof the lateral flanges to provide a shoulder 7 under which a portion ofthe flange of the rail or tread portion 'C engages' to form interlockingmeans whereby vertical displacement of the rail or tread portion Cisobviated. s

The rail O comprises a tread portion and'a projecting flange 8, thelatter adapted to lie alongside the Vertical rail supporting flange 5and be bolted or secured thereto. The flange 8 is provided near itslower edge with a lip or rib 9 to engage under the shoulder 7, therebpreventing Vertical displacement of the rai Corresponding openings areformed in the fianges 5 and 8 to receive bolts 10. A roove 1'1. isformed in the under side of the all or tread portion of the railadjacent to the flange 8 and forms a seat in which'the upper edge of therail supporting flange 5 is seated. In assembling the parts, the rail Cis placed upon the flange 5 with the upper edge of the latter seated inthe groove 11, after which the rail is rocked to cause the li or rib 9to engage under the shoulder 7. o admit of the rocking of the rail C uon the flange 5, the seat 11 and the upper e ge of the flange 5 are maderoundincr in transverse section. Splice bars or fish plates 12 and 13are placed upon opposite sides of the fianges 5 and 8 and are securedthereto by the bolts 10. These splice bars or fish plates engage underthe projecting side portions of the ball or tread of the rail and alsorest upon the lateral nates some distance from the extremities of thebase or lower portion 14 and its ends are adapted to abut against theinner sides of the vertical members of the stringers A, whereas theprojecting portions of the lower or base portion 14 extend beneath saidstringers and are boltedor otherwise fastened to the foot 1 thereof.Hooked bolts 16 connect opposite end portions of the fianges 15 with thestringers and pass through openings in each, the hooked end of the boltpassing through the opening 17 near the end of the fiange 15' and thebody portion of said bolt passing through the opening 18 in the Verticalwing or member 2 of the stringer. The fiange 15 is cut away at its upperedge for a short distance from each end to receive the lateral flange 4near the upper end of the stringer, a projecting portion 19 being leftto pass through an opening 20 of the fiange 4, thereby supplementing theaction of the fastenings 16 when connecting the ties and strlngers.

In order to neutralize vibration and prevent rigidity of the parts,spring washers 21 are mounted upon the outer ends of the bolts 16 andare confined between the vertical wings 2 of the sleepers and the nuts22 threaded upon the outer end of said bolts 16. Shims or pieces of Wood23 are interposed between the horizontal fianges 1 of the sleepers andthe projecting portions of the ties. These shims or blocks of Wood 23prevent pounding of the rails and excessive wear of the rolling stockand give a degree of elasticity about equal to the aceustomed woodenties.

` The splice bar or fish plate 12 extends the entire length of the sleeer or rail and is arranged upon the side o the rail supporting flange 5opposite to that againstw ch the fiange 8 bears. In some instances it ispreferred to provide the rail C with spaced fianges 24, as indicated inFig. 5, said fianges embracing the rail supporting fiange 5. The threefianges are connected by bolts passing through registering openingsformed therein. When the rail C is provided with spaced fianges 24, itis not feasible to provlde an interlocking oint between said fianges 24and the fiange 5, hence the rail is simply slipped upon the flange 5 andsecured thereto by bolts or fastenings 25. In the construction shown inFig. 4, which is specially adapted for street railroads, no splice barsare provided and it is not necessary to bolt the flange 5, because thesurface of the street abutting against opposite sides 4 of the fianges 5and 8 revent lateral displacement thereof and the interlockin Jointbetween said fianges prevents vertica displacement of the rail.

Figs. 1 and 2 show the invention adapted for solid tread rails, such ascommonly emplcg'ed for steam railroads, whereas Figs. 4 an 5 show theinvention ada ted for grooved rails as commonly employed for streetrailuniform lengths, act as gages to insure the rails and sleepers beingspaced apart and uniform, with the result that the' railway is of likegage, and in vconstruction does not require spacing of the rails bymoving one in and the other out, i'n order to properly and uniformlyspace the same.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. In combination, a stringer having a lateral flange provided with anopening, av

tie having a projection to pass through the opening in thelateral-fiange of the sleeper and to interlock therewith, and positiveconnecting means between the tie and stringer. 2. In combination, astringer having a lateral flange provided with an opening, a tie havinga lower portion extending beneath the stringer and having a Verticalflange abutting against the stringer and formed with a projection topass through the opening in the lateral flange thereof, and positiveconneoting means between the stringer and tie.

3. In railroad construction, the combination of parallel stringershaving basal fianges forming extended sup orts and provided at or neartheir u per e ges with vertical and opposite latera fianges, railsseated u on said Vertical fianges and having en ent fianges lappedalongside said vertical fianges and secured thereto, and ties, each tiehaving a lower portion of T form and a Vertical flange 'terminating adistance from the ends of said lower T portion, the ends of the verticalfianges of the ties abutting against the stringers and having projectingportions interlocking with the lateral fianges thereof, and having theend portions of the ties eX- tended beneath the stringers and formingsupports therefor, and positive connecting means between the stringersand ties.

In testimony Whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN W. COOPER. [L. 8.]

Witnesses:

V. B. HILLYARD, W. N. WooDsoN.

